Journals from World War Three
by Anzac123
Summary: A collection of journals from characters in the Endwar universe. The first starts a bit late in the war as I got the idea more than halfway through a session of the campaign so bear with me. Future additions will start from the beginning of World War Three. Note: The journals correspond with different play throughs of the game so they are not related.
1. Journal One

**Colonel Boris Pontenkorva: 39th Assault Battalion, Spetsnaz Guard Brigade**

**17 Weeks after the Start of World War Three**

**25 April 2021**

The retaking of Matera went well. The Euros tried to hold their ground but were flattened under the treads of our armour. As long as our comrades in the Navy can hold off the Euros in the Mediterranean Sea than the estimated 20,000 European Army troops in southern Italy shall be vanquished in a short time. I received a letter from Viktor today. He reports that Ramstein Air Base has been wretched from European control ending a four week battle. The first step in breaking the Bankole Line has finally succeeded. Upon further inquiry I learned from his company commander that he personally knocked out six enemy tanks with just anti-tank grenades scavenged from some dead engineers. I could hardly be prouder of my eldest son.

**1 May 2021**

Once again the Euros tried to stand and fight and once again they were crushed. The largest wind power plant in the European Federation is now ours. If we take the refineries at Rozenburg than the EF will have a trouble in procuring its energy. The enemy forces were mainly made up of second class troops as the majority of their first rate troops were directed at smashing the American beach head in Portugal. However the infamous Major General Alexis Matz was in overall command giving the Euros some chance of success. This was squandered as he pieced out his elite Battlegroup 1 in support of the second class units. We exploited this mistake to the utmost overwhelming each defensive position with superior numbers and firepower. Unfortunately he along with the surviving units of his battlegroup along with the bulk of European forces in Spain were able to use a sea route to evacuate to France before we could secure northern Spain. The Americans with their powerful Navy had amble opportunity to send the Fritz to the bottom of the ocean but refrained from doing so. One of my staff officers thinks that the sudden halt of hostilities against the Americans in Portugal had something to do with it. Several divisions were able to escape before we closed the gap but the few who remained were smashed. We passed the proposal of a possible Euro-American cease-fire in Portugal up to General Izotov and he agrees. We will make the Americans pay dearly for this. General Izotov reassured us that the American beach head in Portugal will soon be but a memory. That would be just a tap on the wrist for letting most of a corps sized unit of Europeans escape in my view.

**3 May 2021**

Damn that bastard Matz to Hell! He had to give the Americans detailed information on our initial assault on La Mancha in exchange for safe passage. We had barely begun refitting our troops when the Americans struck at dawn this morning. They were all too effective at striking with ship launched missiles targeting various units' headquarters effectively paralyzing a section of our front. The American attack ruptured a wide portion of our frontlines creating a large bulge. If it weren't for my unit along with Colonel Kurochnik's 56th Airborne Battalion halting the attack outside Madrid who knows how far the Americans could have advanced. The Yankee assault was spearheaded by Brigadier General Nathaniel Goudie's 15th Special Operations Battalion. I don't think I've ever faced a more difficult adversary but we mauled them badly. Not without losses though. My armoured brigade lost half of its T-100s and casualties among the infantry were slightly worse. If anything the Yankees know how to fight much better than the Europeans. The only reason they pulled back was they were in danger of being cut off. I must watch for this Goudie in the future. Even though we can replace the casualties it hurts the men's morale. In other news Ramstein has fallen to the Euros. No word from Viktor as of yet. I know he is a fighter but I fear the worst.

**6 May 2021**

The 39th has received orders to be refitted and transferred to Germany. Word is we're planning a massive push in the area to break the back of the European Army and support General Doletska's attack on Paris from the south. We're to be deployed in the region around Ramstein so maybe my unit will be included in the liberation of the base. Whether this deployment is due to our unit's near flawless battle record or a favour from General Izotov I do not know nor care. Viktor has been listed as missing in action. Hopefully I can find my son amongst the mounds of dead Euros that will lay in my wake.

**12 May 2021**

What General Izotov has set up is truly impressive. Four fronts will be brought to bear on the Euro defensive line. With all this men and material its focal point of Ramstein will sure be swept away by all this firepower. The Euros have detected these movements but they are for naught. Even with a majority of their military manning the defensive line we still have a 3 to 1 advantage in just about everything. The moral of the men is excellent. After several bitter months of grinding through Eastern, Central, and Western Europe they see victory is within sight. This is what our grandfathers must have felt like as they closed in on Berlin in '45. Despite my gut telling me otherwise I am hoping to see Viktor alive. I've never been an optimist but I can't picture my son just up and dying. A people as weak as the Euros could never kill such a strong man as Viktor. It won't be long before I get my answer. Extra rations of vodka are being issued. The attack must be close at hand.

**22 May 2021**

The gates of Paris are being smashed down by our tanks as I write this. General Izotov's grand offensive was an overall success. After bitter fighting we took Ramstein completing our conquest of Germany. The taunted impervious Bankhole the Euros had been constructing since before the war began crumbled as the enemy was completely routed and fled towards Paris. Not even their orbital lasers could stop us. Much to my dismay, however, we didn't get to stay in Ramstein long as we were continuously thrust into battle. Now the enemy capital is almost surrounded and the European Federation is taking its dying breathes. That should make me ecstatic but I cannot find it in me. While they were clearing Ramstein of booby traps during our advance they located Viktor. He and several dozen of his fellow soldiers were found in a hanger. Their hands had been bound behind their backs and each of them had their throats slit. It is no way for a proud soldier like Viktor to have died. I still haven't broke the news to his mother. I honestly don't know how to tell my wife that her first born had his throat cut like a pig. Many Euro fathers will be breaking the similar news to their wives though. I've ordered no prisoners be taken during our dash across France and my men happily obliged. General Izotov encourages this as he says it sows fear in our enemies' hearts. I do not care about that. I want every parent of a European soldier to feel the same loss I have. Fuck everything else.

_Colonel Pontenkorva was killed shortly after this last journal entry by an EF artillery barrage._


	2. Journal Two

**Private Konrad Ulbricht: Battle Group 5 (Airborne), European Federation Enforcer Corps**

**20****th**** May 2020**

My mother gave me this journal right after I graduated from the Enforcer Corps Academy in the hopes I'd fill its pages and reflect on my experiences when I was older. I never really thought to use it until now. Judging by the monumental events that are sure to take place now I think it's justifiable. The European Federation is now officially at war with both the United States of America and the Russian Federation. For the last few days we've been checking and rechecking all our gear in preparation for just this but I never thought it would happen. Our unit is preparing to roll out of Le CEITO later on tonight. No one has officially been told where we're heading but rumor has it the entire battlegroup is headed to Portugal. If that's the case than most likely we'll be facing off against the Americans soon. A lot of the men (mostly the younger ones like myself) are confident Europa will succeed. The EC gave the Amis a good beat down when they tried to pull that little stunt in Copenhagen. The Russians….I don't think we even have to worry about the Russians. We'll kick them out of Poland in no time and be in Moscow by the end of the summer. Still I think it's funny how the world can go to Hell at the drop of the hat. One day we're all living in somewhat peaceful harmony and the next we're in a full blown shooting war. The human race has been that way since day one I suppose. Whoever said we're creatures of habit hit the nail on the head. I just wish our habit wasn't killing one another.

**24****th**** May 2020**

Arrabida sure is a pretty place. The people here are nice and even helped us dig our fighting positions. The regular Army guys and gals stationed here are really happy to have us around. Their admiration makes me extra proud to be in the Enforcer Corps. The last of the battlegroup's armor finally made it here. Colonel Haider is pretty pissed that it took so long for them to get here by rail. Apparently some deep cover Russian saboteurs blew up a couple railways in Spain. Authorities caught the bastards and executed them as enemy spies. Serves the savages right. Things are kind of calm around here strangely. We go on patrols along the coast and the normal garrison duty. Whenever we're off duty we just sit around, clean our weapons, talk, and sleep. If war is like this than it really isn't all too bad. I don't get why the older guys are always tense. It's like they expect the Amis to just appear out of thin air and attack. We're sure to get word of any incoming Americans long before they arrive so I don't understand why they get so worked up about us slacking off just a little. I know we're elite paratroopers and all but even we need some downtime right?

**25****th**** May 2020**

I wish we would have listened to the veterans. Some of my friends would still be alive if we would have listened. The goddamn Americans came like phantoms in the night. They knocked off our coastal patrols almost simultaneously and we didn't even notice because the overwatch officer fell asleep at his post. If he weren't dead Colonel Haider would have surely relieved him. Because of us being lax the Americans were able to land a sizable force of armored vehicles in the dead of night and launch a surprise attack in the morning. Us and our Army brethren were caught with our pants down literally in some cases. I shall only admit to this journal that it was a literal case for me. I was pissing in a latrine when the first American artillery rounds fell on our encampment. I dove in the latrine and cowered in shit until the barrage lifted and by then American tanks and transports were already raking the area with fire. It was a complete route. A lot of our own armor was destroyed before their crews could even man them. I can't believe we failed so badly. Now Europa's soil is being defiled by an American presence. We were sent back to Le CEITO to draw new equipment. Colonel Haider took our defeat better than most of us did. He told us that we should learn from the experience and never let our guard down. We all took that to heart.

**19 June 2020**

A lot of our NCOs got transferred temporarily to Battlegroup 4 (Airborne) fighting in the east. Apparently Battlegroup 4 had a lot of their NCOs killed and needed temporary replacements for an attack until permanent ones could be found. Most of them came back with only one being killed and several wounded too badly to return to duty. We tried asking them what it was like but very few of them said anything about it. Those who did talk simply said be glad we were mainly fighting the Americans. Things must be pretty bad in the east. We'd received new equipment and had begun training but the tempo increased when the NCOs returned. They taught us what they'd learned in their short time fighting the Ruskies but boy was it a lot. We learned how to barely expose ourselves by peaking around cover instead of over it, we learned an array of new camouflage techniques using anything available to us, and in my mind the coolest thing was when they taught us a few bayoneting techniques they picked up from the Russians. The number of live fire exercises we did also increased and we learned how to operate in open terrain better. Our moral picked up and in no time we were in fighting shape again. A lot of Gadflys are arriving at Le CEITO. That usually means we're about to get thrown in the thick of it again. We are much more prepared this time. Whoever they are sending us to fight, they will get the full taste of Battlegroup 5.

**21 June 2020**

Today is my birthday. I turn nineteen. Instead of celebrating like a regular nineteen year old in peacetime would I'm just coming back from patrol. However, looking out and seeing nearly two dozen still burning American vehicles lighting up the night I couldn't think of a better gift. We arrived at La Mancha a little before dawn. Immediately we were ordered into battle by the local commander. Alongside the Army we halted a US Marine probing force and drove them off without revealing too much about our force composition. Knowing that a larger attack probably by the JSF would follow we shifted positions forward of our point of contact and put our newfound camouflage techniques to use. We were able to hide two platoons of riflemen and two platoons of engineers amongst some rocks on a hill. Colonel Haider attached one platoon of Army riflemen and one platoon of Army engineers to two of our transports and a tank platoon for use in a forward recon screen in a small town across a road from the dug in infantry. He placed the Army infantry in the town with the tank platoon as support and the transports performing the dual role of knocking down any enemy helicopters that came our way and providing the Army infantry with a way to egress the area quickly. The coup de main would be a platoon of Panther 1A3s tanks and PAH-6 Cheetah gunships hidden to the right and slightly behind the hill we were dug in to. In support of all this was one platoon of Marksmen artillery vehicles. It took twenty minutes for the attack to materialize but when it did things moved quickly. A flight of American helicopters were quickly swatted out the sky by a combination of heavy fire from the two transports, riflemen, and engineers. The tank was able to knock off half a platoon of enemy transports before the recon group was forced to pull out. The Americans pursued but took the longer route on a road around the town and right in front of our entrenched troops. When we interrogated some prisoners we captured they told us their company commander thought they were avoiding an ambush when they went around the town instead of through it. **WAS HE WRONG! **The Americans came down the road in a convoy, one vehicle behind the other, concerned more with catching up with their attackers than situational security. When the first vehicle hit the minefield some Army engineers were able to plant the real ambush kicked off. Captain Haider had dug in with us. He was the first to fire a Milana 2 at the column. The engineers then fired followed by the artillery. American transports blew up like plastic toys stuffed with fireworks while the tanks took a lot more fire to take down. The second we saw the transport ramps go down to let out their infantry us riflemen opened up. The carnage was increased tenfold when the Panthers and Cheetahs joined in. Within minutes the column had been decimated. Not a vehicle remained unscathed and not many soldiers were left standing. Standing in full view of whatever American soldiers remained he gave the order to round up survivors and treat any of our wounded. Not letting the joy of victory get to us just yet we did what we had been ordered and stood ready to repel any more assaults. No more materialized. The Americans would not be defiling any more of Europa's soil today. Not while Battlegroup 5 is around.

**23 June 2020**

Word got passed around we are now heading for Denmark. Unfortunately we will be able to participate in the push to kick the Yankees off our soil. That pissed a lot of us off but we go where Europa needs us most. The Russians are pouring into Denmark from Sweden and the Army contingent there is having trouble holding them back. They're heading straight towards Copenhagen intent on capturing the Enforcer Corps Base there. The Urban Combat Training Center is located at that base so General Bankole has no intention of giving it up. After La Mancha the NCOs who fought with Battlegroup 4 were more open about their experiences. They told us the Russians fought very differently than the Americans. In fact it was like an entirely different war going up against them. They warned us in grave tones not to get captured. It was better to put a bullet in your own head than fall into Russian hands. After hearing that I'll be damned if an Ivan takes me prisoner. The stories my grandfather told me that were passed on from his father from World War Two makes me a firm believer in what the NCOs are saying. Just like in the last world war the Russians have no qualms about mutilating captured soldiers. We were allowed to make a video call before we left. We weren't allowed to say where we were going or when we were leaving but I could see some of the worry leave my parents' faces when they saw I was okay. My father let me know he was really proud I was fighting for my country and my mom made me promise I wouldn't take any unnecessary risks. My father and I traded looks on that one. He smiled the tiniest smile I'd ever seen. He himself was a Bundeswehr veteran of the War on Terrorism at the turn of the century. He more than anyone understood that the profession of soldiering was just that; an unnecessary risk.

**28 June 2020**

We seemed to have arrived just in time to save Copenhagen. The 3rd Infantry Division had taken a hell of a beating holding back Ivan until we arrived. They had so many losses they had to be taken off the line immediately once Battlegroup 5 began combat operations. This forced us to only defend the area immediately around the base leaving the civilians to do the best they could to escape before a sea of Russians swept over them. For two days we watched as Copenhagen burned. We sent out a few detachments to help lead civilians into the base but they were regularly beaten back by Russian troops. Every so often we'd have to send a small task force into the city to rescue a detachment that was heavily pinned down. One detachment strayed too far and was overwhelmed before we could get a task force to them. One was still sent out to recover the bodies and discovered them hanging from light posts with their eyes gouged out and saw dust stuffed in their mouths. That was, with the exception of the NCOs, our first face-to-face experience of what the Russians were capable of. Even though it frightened us it hardened our resolve a lot more. At night the Russians in the city would get howling drunk, literally. They would howl and the cold winds would carry the eerie sounds to our lines. It was…unnerving to say the least. They kept us up two nights in a row with that damn howling and if that wasn't enough they drop an artillery round or two in the perimeter of the base to shake things up. Sergeant Demange says you get used to it after a while. I don't know about that. I'm more than ready to kill the bastards doing all the howling. Maybe then I could get a decent night's sleep.

**31 June 2020**

If it wasn't for the Academy I would be a dead man. The Russian attack started as soon as the sun rose yesterday and final tapered off last night. Wave after wave of men in pea soup green with tanks intermixed with them was hurled at us. All of our forward outposts were overwhelmed in the first ours. Some men made it back to our lines but a lot more didn't. I prayed that their deaths were swift. The way the Russians threw themselves at the bases' walls reminded me of sieges from medieval times. We handled that pretty well with massed artillery fire and numerous airstrikes but then the Spetsnaz Guard Brigade showed up midway through the second day. The waves of infantry and tanks were just a distraction so we wouldn't notice them coming at us from the other side of the base. They have these tanks, gigantic nasty mother fuckers, that our handheld rocket launchers barely put a dent in. I swear I saw one shrug off a direct hit from an artillery shell but then again I was pretty tired. Well three platoons of those tanks, Ogres we nicknamed them, smashed through the western entrance letting in three platoons of transports and a company of regular troops. Thankfully we had air superiority or they would have brought chopper support too. Their transports kept our Cheetahs away which allowed their Ogres to tear through five companies of Leopard 2s the Army left behind to help us which in turn where needed to take out the transports so the Cheetahs could engage the Ogres. The SGB unit romped through the base for a good bit before Captain Haider was able set up an ambush to destroy the transports giving our attack helicopters a fighting chance. I was busy chasing down Spetsnaz riflemen rampaging through the base with my platoon and another to see that engagement but it took a combination of the Cheetahs and Hailstorm fighters to finally neutralize those tanks. The running gun battle we had with the riflemen was no walk in the park either. The company of regular Russian Army troops got shredded pretty quickly by artillery fire but the Spetsnaz decided to hide amongst buildings where they knew we wouldn't use artillery. Several times they holed themselves up in some buildings, duked it out with us, and then moved on to a different set of building to repeat the process. Casualties were moderate on both sides but we were finally able to close in on them. The resulting fight to clear them out was not pretty. The room to room combat frequently devolved into hand to hand fighting with bayonets and entrenching tools. For the first time in my life I was forced to kill a man and sometimes females so close I could instantly smell them defecating themselves as I jabbed my bayonet in their throat or sliced open their stomachs. In the end we had to call in another platoon to help but we got the job done. Two more battlegroups arrived that night and drove the Russians off. Heavy casualties were inflicted on the assaulting Russians but we took a good licking too. My platoon of 80 men alone suffered eighteen killed, forty-five wounded, and three missing in action. The three missing in action will probably be included in the KIA figure when they find enough of them to be able to identify. Somehow I escaped with just a few cuts and a grazing wound from a bullet fragment. Not enough to get me extended R&R but enough to get me a medal. I'll probably send it home so father can put it in a chest with his. Once again we're being sent to Le CEITO for grievously needed reinforcements and to overhaul our gear. We looked like walking dead men boarding the Gadflys. I hope we don't have to fight the Russians again anytime soon. The NCOs were right about a lot of things when it came to fighting Russians. After having a taste of what both our enemies can do I definitely rather fight the Amis. I'm having trouble keeping my eyes open so I'll put this thing away and catch some shut eye.

**7 July 2020**

I got promoted to unteroffizier upon the unit's return to Le CEITO. A lot of the guys are getting promoted in preparation for us to receive new recruits.They're a lot of fresh faces in Battlegroup 5 now. It's painfully obvious they aren't being trained up to the same standards as we were. Most likely a byproduct of rushed training. They aren't completely green but they have a lot to learn. A popular nickname for them is kinders because they remind us of kids compared to us veterans. We've been teaching them the ropes for a few days and they're taking to it pretty well. A lot of them are eager to get into the war. I can't say I share their enthusiasm. If we just sat here and trained for the rest of the war I'd be more than happy. Alas Europa still needs us and I will not refuse her call. I don't expect us to train much longer. The fighting in the east is turning into a slug fest that eats up men and material like a cow eats grass. It'd be better if we could train a bit more but I don't see it happening. The kinders thirst for action is going to be quenched very soon it seems.

**23 July 2020**

For the past two weeks we've been making practice jumps in southern Italy. We haven't jumped from aircraft since the Academy and honestly I miss it. The feeling of floating up in the air is one of my favorites. The new guys griped and complained about it but they don't know what they're missing. There are three other battlegroups in the area along with a couple divisions from the Army. A big invasion is coming. That much is obvious. Along with the jump training we conducted familiarization training with Russian weapons. That told us all we needed to know about who we were facing next but it was welcomed. We handled AK-74s, Russian grenades, and RPGs mostly. The best part is we were able to better accustom ourselves to facing the Ogres. It terrified the new guys to see one. Naturally we veterans thrust our chests out a little knowing we had faced those beasts and lived to tell about it. We found out the best way to take them out was destroying the tracks and bombarding the rear with rockets. We picked up quite a few tricks for use against the Russians that would come in handy. I ran into an old classmate while cross training with some regular Army infantry. Hans is a good friend of mine and I felt pretty bad I didn't even know he joined the Army. Funny thing is were on the same battlefield on two separate occasions and never ran into each other until now. When we got some time to wind down we swapped war stories and laughed at how silly we had been as kids. His impeccable sense of humor was still intact. We exchanged information so we could keep in contact. War has a funny way of reuniting people as well as tearing them apart. My reunion with Hans must be one of the rare cases of reuniting.

**28 July 2020**

Just a quick entry. We're invading Albania to cut off the Russian supply of oil in the region under the codename Operation Condor. We were briefed that afternoon and are scheduled to board the transport planes a little before midnight. Battlegroup 5's mission was to parachute behind enemy lines ahead of the main seaborne landing force and seize a refinery in the town of Vlore. We will have to hold out on our own with minimum resupply for three days and four nights until we could expect to be relieved by units moving in from the beaches. Captain Haider said he expected us to fight like the sons and daughters of Europa we are. None of us wanted to let him down. We'd die before that happened. Going to try and catch a few hours of shut eye before we embark. God knows I'll need it.

_Unteroffizier Ulbricht's transport was shot down over Albania by intense anti-aircraft fire during the jump. His body was never recovered but he is presumed killed in action. _


End file.
